Introduction

I recolored Diana's splash art using GIMP. Feel free to copy the image. The resolution is pretty bad though because I grabbed it from Facebook. The original image is 1280x800 so if you want it I could find a way to send it.

Hi guys. This is a guide for Diana Mid. Use the GUIDE TABLE OF CONTENTS above, to get started.

Diana Is my favorite champion and I do really well with her. I have a good win ratio with this champ in ranked (65%).

Diana is a champion that I feel that I know inside and out more than any other champion in the game. Hopefully by the end of this guide, you will learn a thing or two about how to become a great Diana player.

Summoner Spells

Main

SPACE

Flash is a must have on Diana. Diana lacks mobility at early levels, so if you get ganked, Flash can help you escape. You can also use Flash to get in range for a Crescent Strike.

SPACE

Ignite is my prefered second choice for summoner spells. It can give you the edge when going all in. If your burst damage doesn't finish off a target, Ignite increases the chances of them dying when they retreat.

Alternative

SPACE

Teleport is a good alternative to ignite, but in most cases I would take Ignite over Teleport. If you happen to take this spell, you can make some interesting plays after reaching lv.6. Just teleport to a ward near the bot lane if you see them overextended.

Runes and Masteries

I don't want to go too in depth about these, so I will stick to the basics.

Greater Mark of Attack Speed I like taking 6 of these because I find atk speed more useful than magic penetration. This gives an additional 10% atk speed, which makes cs'ing easier(passive is activated more often).

Greater Seal of Armor taking armor runes is smart because a lot of junglers are AD. This gives you some defense from early ganks.

Abyssal Scepter is a good item to rush if your lane opponent is AP, which most of them will be. It provides good magic resist and gives a decent amount of ability power. It also reduces the magic resist of nearby enemies, making your spells do more damage.

SPACE

Nashor's Tooth is one of the most important items to get on Diana and here is why. Nashor's Tooth provides ability power, which is great for Diana, cool down reduction, which means more Q's Crescent Strike and more ults Lunar Rush, and Nashor's Tooth also provides 50% attack speed and additional damage on auto attacks. This stat makes your passive devastating, especially now that it has an 80% ap ratio. This was to compensate for the Lich Bane nerf, but I don't normally recommend building Lich Bane every game anyways, so Nashor's Tooth is perfect.

SPACE

Zhonya's Hourglass is an important item to have on Diana. It gives loads of ability power and decent armor. This item has a unique active that lets you become invulnerable for 2.5 seconds. This active makes Diana a good initiator in team fights. She can Q Crescent Strike, ult Lunar Rush, pull everyone close with E Moonfall, AOE shield Pale Cascade, and then Zhonya's Zhonya's Hourglass.

SPACE

Rabadon's Deathcap is another core item to have on Diana. It gives the same amount of ability power as Zhonya's Hourglass (120 AP) and its unique passive increases ability power by 30%. This makes all of your abilities very powerful.

SPACE

Void Staff is a powerful item to have on Diana. It gives additional ability power and its unique passive grants 35% magic penetration. You can choose to build this as your last item or earlier, if you think the enemy team has a lot of magic resistance. If you don't feel like you need the extra damage, this item can be substituted for other items below.

Situational Items

SPACE

Frozen Heart is probably the situational item that I find myself buying most often. It gives a lot of armor, cool down reduction, and slows the attack speed of enemy champions. I like to take this as my last item for teams that have 3 champions that do AD damage, for example: AD top, an ADC, and an AD jungler. If you already have Nashor's Tooth, this item makes your cool down reduction at its max 40%, (20% from Nashor's Tooth and 20% from this item) which means faster spells.

SPACE

Guardian Angel is an item that I like to build if you are important in team fights. Say you get fed during the game. You are the most damage dealing champion, so your life is important when fighting the enemy team. This item gives a good balance or magic resistance and armor and also revives you if you happen to die in a fight.

SPACE

Rylai's Crystal Scepter is a good item to build for more health. It also applies a slow to targets that are hit by your spells. This makes chasing targets easier. Since your Crescent Strike can hit multiple targets, Rylai's only applies a 15% slow to the target you hit. This is also true for Pale Cascade.

SPACE

Morellonomicon is an item that I like to pick up when I see multiple enemy champions with life steal. If an enemy champion is below 40% health, their healing is reduced by 50%. This item also gives descent ability power and 20% cool down reduction(again, if you have Nashor's Tooth, you will be at the max of 40%).

SPACE

Lich Bane is a good last item to buy on Diana. I prefer buying it later, as opposed to buying it early on. It gives good ability power and makes your initial burst very powerful. This makes assassinating a priority target faster. This item recently got a nerf, so it is not as effective as it used to be on Diana, but you can still build it.

Spells

SPACE

Moonsilver Blade is an amazing passive. The first part of the passive gives Diana Increased attack speed, which is nice. The next part of the passive lets Diana do bonus magic damage every third auto attack. The bonus AP damage has an 80% AP ratio! This makes Nashor's Tooth an essential item to have on Diana so you can do more damage with the passive more often. This part of the passive also works on turrets.

SPACE

Crescent Strike is Diana's Q. This is also the ability that you should always max first. this ability is an AOE nuke that deals good AP damage and also reveals enemies for a few seconds and also marks them with moonlight. This ability is used in combination with Diana's Ultimate, Lunar Rush explained later. In the beginning, it can take some time getting used to the arc that Crescent Strike has, but once you learn to control it you will be fine.

RANGE OF SPELL

SPACE

Pale Cascade is Diana's W. This ability should be maxed second. When this ability is activated, Diana is given a shield that has orbiting balls around it. these balls can be detonated by hitting an enemy champion. The balls also do some damage. If all of the balls detonate, Diana's shield will be refreshed. This makes Diana pretty tanky late game.

RANGE OF SPELL

SPACE

Moonfall is Diana's E. Max this one last. This ability slows enemies and draws them in closer to Diana. You can use this spell to keep enemies from escaping from you. It can also be used to slow enemies who may be chasing a teammate in danger and can also be used to cancel channeling spells.

RANGE OF SPELL

SPACE

Lunar Rush is Diana's R. This ability works hand in hand with Crescent Strike. As I mentioned earlier, Crescent Strike marks enemies with moonlight. If you use Lunar Rush on an enemy with moonlight, the mark will be consumed and the cool down for Lunar Rush will be refreshed( works on creeps and monsters too). This feature makes it easy to keep up with a fleeing target. Important: it is possible to Crescent Strike and then Lunar Rush before Crescent Strike hits the target. You can still get a cool down reset on Lunar Rush if it is done within a very small timeframe(like .3 seconds or something small).

RANGE OF SPELL

Basic Spell Combo

THEN THEN THEN

This is the basic spell order that you should use when engaging an enemy champion. Although, if you think that the champion will not run, hold off on using Moonfall until they try to. Also, Moonfall can cancel channeling spells, so this is another reason to hold off on using it right away.

THEN THEN THEN

Late game, your can change you spell combo to look like this. You may want to activate Moonfall before Pale Cascade so you can draw everyone in close, which in turn, makes your shield hit more people and the refresh on the shield is faster.

Lane Match Ups

The following are what I believe to be lane rankings vs. Diana. Note: These are based on my own experience so other people might disagree with my picks for each category. If you want another list of champion ranks that isn't mine: click here...

Easy Lane Opponents

For the most part, you can easily win against these champs. Just don't play too aggressive or push up to hard because you will then be vulnerable to ganks.

Katarina

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #1. All of Katarina's spells have cool downs only and do not require mana. Keep this in mind. Staying back is the key to this lane because Katarina can use spells more often than you. Staying back also prevents her from doing bonus damage from Bouncing Blades

Akali

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #1. Diana excels in lane when versing Akali. Akali is similar to Diana in the sense that she is weak pre lv.6. Diana also wins trades against Akali because Diana has a shield. Feel free to play this lane more on the aggressive side. When Akali reaches level 6, you should be a little bit more cautious.

Lux

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #1. Lux is a pretty easy Champ to deal with. Dodging her stun is the key. As long as you don't get stunned, Lux can't do much damage to you. Be carful though if you are thinking about turret diving because Lux has a shield that can screw you over.

Nidalee

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #1. Dodging Nidalee's spears is the key to winning this lane. Nidalee can't really do any damage to you without them pre lv.6. Also, be careful of turret diving because Nidalee has a heal.

Zed

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #1. Zed can do a lot of damage to you if you are in auto attack range. He can also use his Living Shadow to get close to you. Play this lane passively until lv.6. Don't try to push the lane.

Twisted Fate

Twisted Fate isn't that hard to beat. Just be cautious when he has a yellow card up. If you get stunned, his Wild Cards will do a lot of damage. After reaching lv.6, you should have no problems getting a kill.

Fizz

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #1. Fizz is a really strong champion in general, but Diana is a good pick against him. Whenever Fizz dashes toward you, you can just shield to tank the damage. I also think that Diana is good against Fizz because he is a melee champ. In most cases, Diana is good against melee mids.

Medium Lane Opponents

These lane opponents are somewhat hard to deal with, but If you play passively, you should be fine. A lot of people have trouble against Mordekaiser, but I don't find him that hard.

Ziggs

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #2. Ziggs can be a tricky champion to deal with in lane. his Bouncing Bomb does a lot of damage, so dodging them as much as possible is important. He can also do a lot of damage early on with his auto attacks, so I would recommend playing this lane passively until lv.6.

Mordekaiser

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #2. Mordekaiser is very annoying to deal with. He gains a shield by using abilities. This makes it difficult to poke him. Always watch his shield bar so you can find an opportunity to strike. I would definitely recommend playing this lane passively pre lv.6.

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD#2. Leblanc is hard to hit and does a lot of damage with her Distortion and can also silence you if hit by a Sigil of Silence first. Staying back is a good idea. If you see Leblanc use her projectile Sigil of Silence, back away as soon as possible to increase your chances of making Leblanc miss her Distortion. Leblanc's passive is also annoying because it can be hard to tell which Leblanc is the real Leblanc in the heat of battle. If you Ignite Leblanc before her passive activates, you can tell which one is the real Leblanc.

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #1. Brand Burns! From a combination of his passive and any two spells, Brand can stun you. Pillar of Flame is an AOE circle of fire that can deal damage to you, so try to avoid it as much as possible. It has a slight delay, so you have to react fast. Watch out for Brand's ult Pyroclasm. It can bounce from targets and hit you a maximum of 3 times.

Kassadin

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #1. Kassadin is pretty week pre lv.6., but he has good defenses against AP. He gains a shield that absorbs magic damage from his Null Sphere and his passive makes him take 15% less magic damage. I would recommend playing on the safe side. Do not attack him while his spell shield is up. His ultimate Riftwalk also makes it hard to secure a kill sometimes, because of the teleport.

Hard Lane Opponents

These lane opponents are difficult to lane against. You will almost never get the upper hand, so I would recommend playing passively and having your jungler gank. When I vs. Heimerdinger, I don't usually die and sometimes I get kills on him, but I will usually lose lane because he pushes really hard.

Heimerdinger

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #2. Heimerdinger is a very hard laneing opponent. He will most likely win lane because of his pushing ability. If Heimerdinger gets out of the range of his turrets at some point, this is your chance to go in on him because his turrets do the majority of the damage. You should never go in on him if he is near his turrets. He also has a stun CH-1 Electron Storm Grenade that can make you take a lot of damage from his turrets if stunned in the middle of them.

Swain

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #2. Swain is a huge counter to Diana. He can stun you with Nevermove and do a lot of damage with his freeking bird. Swain can win trades and has sustain after getting his ult Ravenous Flock, which makes him extremely hard to kill. Just play the lane passively and have your jungler gank if he over extends.

Gragas

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #2. Gragas is a pretty hard lane opponent. His Drunken Rage makes him take reduced damage. His Barrel Roll also does a lot of damage. He can also use Barrel Roll to keep you from getting close to the creeps because it can be detonated at a later time. His ult Explosive Cask can send you flying in a direction favorable to him. You most likely won't win trades, so play passively and have your jungler gank.

Chogath

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #2. Chogath is a very tanky lane opponent and if you can't kill him pre lv.6., you probably never will. Chogath's passive Carnivore lets him sustain all day long. Try and get as much cs as possible. Also, dodge his Rupture so you don't get knocked up.

cassiopeia

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #2. Cassiopia does a ton of damage. Most of her spells have a poison effect, so you will need to constantly be using potions. If you get close to her, she can do some crazy damage with Noxious Blast. I wouldn't recommend ever going in on Cassiopeia because her ult Petrifying Gaze will freeze you and then you will be bursted down. Have your jungler gank when she has you underneath your turret.

Riven

Recommended Start: STARTING BUILD #2. Riven is a counter to Diana in general. The enemy team might pick riven to counter you mid lane even if Riven doesn't seem to fit into the team comp. Riven will always win trades against you and has a lot of cc. she can stun you with Ki Burst and pop you up with the third activation of Broken Wings. I would recommend staying away from Riven and only engaging if you have help from your jungler.

Jax

Recommended Start:STARTING BUILD #2. Jax is a counter to Diana in general. He always wins trades and can keep up with you if you try to flee. He can stun you with his Counter Strike. This ability also makes him dodge your basic attacks. Not only that, but this ability will also deal bonus damage to you based on how much damage your auto attacks did to him. If you ever get into a fight with Jax,(which you should never do) make sure you stop auto attacking when Counter Strike is still active.

Great Tips/Tricks and Things to Know (Video Included)

I made a video that goes along with most of these tips.

•
[In Video] Before you are ready to use Lunar Rush, auto attack a minion twice, so your passive is ready to activate (Diana's blade will be flashing). This makes your initial burst more powerful when engaging an enemy champ.

• [In Video] I mentioned this earlier, but it is a good tip. It is possible to Crescent Strike and then Lunar Rush before Crescent Strike hits the target. You can still get a cool down reset on Lunar Rush if it is done within a very small timeframe. It is also possible to use your Lunar Rush first and then use Crescent Strike mid dash and you will still get the cool down reset. This is very difficult to pull off, however, so I don't recommend doing this.

• [In Video] If you find yourself in trouble, Diana can use her Crescent Strike over a wall to reveal a jungle monster and then use Lunar Rush to dash to it. You can also use this technique if you are chasing an enemy champion. if there are enemy minions in front of you , you can Crescent Strike and then Lunar Rush to the minion to get closer to the fleeing target.

• Sometimes, you might want to use Crescent Strike at max distance even if the enemy champ is right in front of your face. Consider this scenario: You just dashed to Ezreal and you are about to use another Crescent Strike. Your Crescent Strike goes off right in front of you right where Ezreal would have been, but he uses his Arcane Shift to teleport away. If you had used Crescent Strike at max range, it would have had a better chance at hitting Ezreal, despite his teleport.

Warding locations

One of the main causes of death for me in the midlane is from ganks. I rarely get killed in a 1v1 fight with the mid enemy champ. Warding is super important and can literally save your life. Knowing where to place wards is also important. There are more effective locations than others.

Near enemy raith camps:
This location gives you a good indication on where the enemy jungler is. You should ward near the raiths on the other side if you are on the purple team.

Another location that people like to use is in the middle bushes. This location works well in low ELO matches because it will give you an extra moment to flee from an incoming gank. Just make sure that you put the ward directly in the middle of the bush, or some areas of the bush might not be visible(season 4 wards OP).

I like to put Vision Wards in these bushes. If the enemy jungler happens to walk through, they will either try to destroy the ward, which will by you more time, or they will walk past and the ward will remain there (Vision wards are infinite unless destroyed).

I found a really good video describing warding locations (not mine).

Don't Like Nashor's Tooth?

Some people prefer to not build Nashor's tooth when they play Diana. Not having this item makes Diana more of an assassin and doesn't focus on sustained damage. Here are some of the things that can be done if you chose to not buy this item.

Changes to masteries:
This is optional, but I think putting 4 points into Sorcery rather than in Fury would be a good idea, since this build doesn't rely on attack speed. The extra cool down reduction would be useful.

Summary

1. I hope you found this guide useful. I am planning on including more information in the future. I was also kind of general when describing lane match ups. I might go into more detail when I have more time. I will also eventually add in some of my recent games and some of my stats.

2. Diana is an underrated champion and not many people play her, but she is a very fun and powerful champ to play. If you can master her abilities and build properly, you can carry games when the rest of your team fails you.

3. Although, I'm glad that not a lot of people play Diana because it makes it that much more impressive when you do good and kill everything in sight, lel oh lel.

League of Legends is a team based, real time strategy game set in a mythical world of swords & magic where epic battles decide the fate of mystical nations. Game players take on the role of a Summoner who conjures and controls champions to fight for them at the Institute of War. During game play champions gain experience and items to enhance their skills and abilities. How players develop and play their champions can be the difference between a crushing defeat or a glorious victory!